VW T5 4Motion Expedition Vehicle

[scottishpinz]

Kiravan's 'Door Store' fitted after carpet lining.

 

[scottishpinz]

The build is nearly over. Of course over the coming year I'm sure there will be several tweaks as we use the van and see how it works in use. The bed platform is carpeted and fits perfect. As planned part of it can be folded up, still leaving room for the mattress, and two mountain bikes can be fitted at the side. Getting the finish as neat as this has taken time but I'm really pleased with the results. Looking into getting a Webasto heater fitted for the winter.

 

[scottishpinz]

The van had it's first big trip this summer. We took in 14 countries crossing southern europe and the alps before heading north.

Interior set up worked really well and we were glad for the air conditioning. I had made fly screens to put in the windows at night.

 

[Herbie]

Awesome!

 

[scottishpinz]

The Alps were amazing

 

[scottishpinz]

You may notice on the above photos that the van is running on steel wheels. When I purchased the T5 I got a full set of steel wheels (spare as well) so I could put a winter / All-Terrain tyre on them. In fact they came with a good set of van tyres so I used them for this summer's trip. 4500 miles, Spain Andorra, France, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Slovakia, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany and the Netherlands.

 

[scottishpinz]

Really interesting to see a German Army (Bundeswehr) VW T5 with the Seikel off road kit, namely side sill protection, raised suspension, bigger tyres and engine protection plate. Basically a Rockton minibus

 

[scottishpinz]

Now came the day on returning to Scotland to fit a set of tyres for the winter ahead. The larger tyres fitted to the Rockton require a lift and change in speedo / gear ratios. This is expensive and would also increase cost for insurance. The other problem is the van is already just under 2m tall and many car parks have height barriers set at 2m. Raising the van would limit where it could go as far as car parks (often on the beach etc.) Lower gear ratios would also affect the performance and fuel economy.

I decided to stay with the factory size of 215/65R16 Looking for a tyre that met all my requirements I settled on BF Goodrich KO2 All-Terrain.

The tyres are load and speed rated for the van, are both m&s and snowflake marked for use in winter and have an excellent B rating for wet grip (an everyday neccesity in Scotland) The new tread pattern has an aggressive sidewall which makes the tyres perhaps look more 'rugged' than they actually are. They are only just on the van so time will tell how they perform.

 

[scottishpinz]

First weekend away with the new tyres on. A fair bit noisier on the road but nothing too problamatic. Didn't really get a chance to test off road grip. Amazing weather in the Scottish Highlands though

 

[scottishpinz]

 

[bianchi]

nice looking van .. where in Scotland are you

cheers

Dave

 

[scottishpinz]

Edinburgh!

 

[scottishpinz]

This summer was in Scandinavia again:

 

[Wyuna]

Hows those KO2 going on the Van now?

Im looking at throwing some 225/65 R17 on my T6, using factory 17 inch steel rims, wanted to see how they are preforming after a few KM on them

 

[scottishpinz]

BF Goodrich AT KO2 tyres have been great. Saw us safely all the way to the arctic last winter as well as many motorway miles in between the gravel of Easter Europe.